Stop applications from updating automatically in Windows

Updates can occur for many reasons: new features being added, fixing bugs, or, most importantly, patching security flaws.

Sometimes it's irritating getting notified of updates to programs when you're working or playing a game, and it isn't uncommon for automatic updating to lack a disable button. If you find yourself annoyed with update notifications that you can't disable, there's a way to get around that.

Screenshot by Nicole Cozma

Step 1: Open the Windows Start Menu and enter Task Scheduler in the search box. Run the Task Scheduler program from the list that appears.

Screenshot by Nicole Cozma

Step 2: Expand the Task Scheduler Library list by clicking on the small triangle next to it.

Screenshot by Nicole Cozma

Step 3: Select the program author from the list.

Screenshot by Nicole Cozma

Step 4: In the middle pane, select the program that you want to stop from being scheduled.

Screenshot by Nicole Cozma

Windows 7 (Professional) Step 5: Click on the Disable option from the list of options that appears in the right pane.

If you can't disable update checking from within a program, then chances are pretty decent that the service is running in the Task Scheduler. It's possible to remove the scheduler entry completely by clicking Remove instead of Disable in Step 5, but it's always a good idea to keep the entry available to quickly re-enable it later if necessary.